Category Archives: Charity

Charity, Sommelier, Tasting, Wine

Postponed—Wine Wednesday for Sawyer’s 50th & November Schedule Updates

Leave a comment

Recent events call for an updated schedule.  There will be NO WINE WEDNESDAY on October 30th, due to the Sebastopol power outage, recent evacuations and ongoing Kincade Fire!

The new date is November 13th (details below), and will additionally support the Sonoma County Resilience Fund, which supports our community’s recovery by helping individuals impacted by the fires, healing the long-term effects of trauma, and creating housing solutions for our community.

So plan to trek on over to Gravenstein Grill in Sebastopol to experience any Wine Wednesday tasting in November!  It is weekly in the Bartlett Bar from 5:30-7pm, and an excellent opportunity to enjoy a free wine tasting with a local wine producer, see schedule below:

November 6:  Preston Farm & Winery

November 13th: Sommelier Chris Sawyer celebrates his 50th with the GG crew and four special vintners!  Breaking Bread Wines, Kokomo Winery, Radio-Coteau, Bacigalupi Vineyards
Wear a costume, taste some wine and come give cheers to Sawyer Somm!!!

November 20:  People’s Wine Revolution

8050 Bodega Ave
Sebastopol, California

Charity, Varietal, Wine

Pinots & Plaid in SF on October 26th!

Leave a comment

Mark your calendar for this First Annual Pinots & Plaid “Best of the Best” Pinot Noir Tasting, featuring 25 leading Pinot Noir producers from Northern California.

Wine lovers, foodies and luxury connoisseurs are invited to enjoy fine wines paired with high end cuisine in the historic, stunningly restored, Hibernia Bank Building, at 1 Jones Street, in San Francisco.
A VIP reception will offer one-on-one conversation with winemakers from 2p.m. to 3 p.m.,  followed by a General Admission reception from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The VIP Lounge Sponsored by San Francisco Magazine & Roederer Estate will feature Sparkling Wine & Caviar and will be open from 3:15 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. VIP ticket holders and sponsors will enjoy Roederer Estate Sparkling Wines paired with caviar from The Caviar Company in an intimate setting.

Well-known, premium brands including Anthill Farms Winery, Blue Farm, Bucher, CIRQ, Clarice Wine Co., Cobb Wines, Copain Wines, Coursey Graves, Dunstan, Dutton Goldfield, Freeman Vineyard & Winery, Gary Farrell, Hyde Estate, Kutch, Lando, Maggy Hawk, Peay Vineyards, Red Car, Reeve, Roederer Estate, Sangiacomo Vineyards, Sojourn Cellars, Stewart Cellars, Texture Wine, Three Sticks, Williams Selyem and Works & Days will showcase rare wines not typically available to the public.

Featuring rare and newly released wines from The Russian River Valley, Anderson Valley, Sonoma and Napa, the event is expected to draw an audience of approximately 500 guests from around the Bay Area. A portion of ticket sales will benefit two San Francisco charities: Meals on Wheels SF and Mission Graduates. Tickets are available on

Pinot & Plaid Tickets are $185 VIP and $115 General Admission

Charity, news, Wine

Sonoma County Wine Auction Raises Record-Breaking $6.1 Million for Local Charities

Leave a comment

The Sonoma County Vintners Foundation are excited to announce $6.1 million was raised at the 2019 Sonoma County Wine Auction! Overall, more than $36 million has been raised to date to support charitable organizations focused on education, health and human services, the environment, and arts and culture in Sonoma County.

This charitable gathering was the culmination of a three-day affair that included an exclusive kickoff party on Thursday evening hosted with the Cline Family at Jacuzzi Family Vineyards and intimate Friday evening Vintner Dinners throughout Sonoma County and San Francisco.

Four hundred auction guests were welcomed to the grounds of La Crema Estate at Saralee’s Vineyard with sunny skies and exceptional Sonoma County wines. Local chefs, including James Beard award-winning Chef Honoree John Ash, prepared an array of decadent bites while guests mingled with non-profit beneficiary organizations.

The 40 auction lots included revered wine collections, luxurious travel excursions, meals prepared by world-class chefs, exclusive experiences with industry and community pillars such as Winemaker Honoree Merry Edwards, Chef Honoree John Ash, Steve Young and Ronnie Lott, as well as rare behind-the-scenes experiences with major sports teams and world-famous musicians Lady Antebellum and Brad Paisley.

“I’m truly inspired and grateful to our Honorary Chairs, our wine community and all the auction participants who have demonstrated phenomenal generosity and support for our Foundation,” said Michael Haney, Sonoma County Vintners Foundation Executive Director. “We are thrilled to help support the Boys & Girls Clubs of Sonoma – Marin as well as our many other Sonoma County nonprofit organizations with the funds raised.”

Charity, Event, Wine

Mags for Ag comes to L.A. on August 1st!

Leave a comment

After my ethereal Healdsburg unicorn adventure here is another chance to join in the festivities and raise some money with the L.A. crowd!  Mags for Ag at the Petersen Automotive Museum, this Thursday August 1st!

7PM RECEPTION:  Caviar, Wines, Canapés, Hibachi Grill, Cured Meats & Cheese

8PM DINNER:  Keynote Speaker, Multi-Course Feast, Magnums Poured Table-side

9PM SILENT AUCTION:  More Wine, Silent Auction & Dessert Reception with Chefs

Mags for Ag is an intimate culinary experience promising up-close engagements with more than a dozen star winemakers pouring magnums table side and chefs cooking to support an important conversation in agriculture to grow thousands of new farmers each year.  It kicks-off with winemaker reception followed by a keynote speaker, seated dinner and silent-auction filled with wine magnums and experiences to benefit charity.

TICKETS are $249 and include reception, dinner & silent auction +save 15% with the PROMOCODE -wineclub

Chefs and winemakers include Host Chef Sean Dent of Drago, Duskie Estes of Black Pig Meat Co., Joshua Whigham of Lapis and Anthony Sasso together with wine friends at Coursey Graves, Sangiacomo Family Vineyards, Small Vines, Lando Wines, Kreck Wines, Arcadian Winery, Davis Family Vineyards, Acorn Winery, Silver Oak Cellars, Rocca Family Vineyards and Phifer Pavitt.

Charity, Food, Wine

High on the Hogs 2019 at EPIC Steak this Sunday June 23

Leave a comment

Join me this Sunday June 23rd, from 1-4pm, at EPIC‘s annual pig & pinot festival benefitting Guide Dogs for the Blind.

Epic Steak, 369 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105

 

Charity, Competition, Wine

Petaluma Gap’s Battle of the Sexes Takes to the Airwaves

Leave a comment

This just in from the Petaluma Gap!  Continuing a tradition started at last year’s Sonoma County Barrel Auction, a men’s and a women’s winemaker teams from the Petaluma Gap American Viticultural Area (AVA) will compete to create the most coveted and unique lot of Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir that expresses the distinct terroir of Sonoma County’s newest AVA.

Dueling Winemakers
Erica Stancliff & Tom Gendall
go on KSRO’s Vintners Vibe, April 11

Representing the women are Erica Stancliff (Trombetta Family Wines), Kerith Overstreet (Bruliam Wines) and Ana Keller (Keller Estate) with a ten-case auction lot called “Aura,” named after the Goddess of the Wind. The men’s lot, called “Zephyros,” the name of the God of the West Wind, is a collaboration from Tom Gendall (Cline Family Cellars), Evan Pontoriero (Fogline Vineyards), Justin Seidenfeld (Rodney Strong) and Shane Finley (Thirty-Seven Wines).

The women’s team outperformed the men at last year’s auction with their lot selling for $14,000 while the men’s lot raised $9,000, but the men have declared themselves ready for a rematch. “I will let the wine speak for itself,” says Gendall confidently. “The wines were all stunning and the final blend really shone through as the best expression from all four sites. Beautiful, delicate aromatics with bright red fruits, great structure and mouth-watering acidity on a very long finish with well-integrated spice and savoriness. It really is a once-in-a-lifetime wine, and we are very excited to show it off.”

Hear what Erica Stancliff has to say about the women’s blend and the distinct vineyards it’s sourced from when she and Tom Gendall meet on KSRO’s Vintners Vibe talk show on Thursday, April 11 at 4:30 PM, 1350 AM | 103.5 FM radio. Six individual wineries are also offering up “Never Before, Never Again” Pinot Noir wines from the Petaluma Gap including Cline Family Cellars, Guarachi Family Wines, Fulcrum Wines, Keller Estate, Schermeister Winery and Sojourn Cellars. Interested trade buyers can taste all the wines at a preview event at Grand Cru Custom Crush on May 2.

The Fifth Annual Sonoma County Barrel Auction, presented by Sonoma County Vintners, will auction off to trade buyers more than eighty lots of “Never Before, Never Again” wines from diverse Sonoma County regions on May 3, 2019 at MacMurray Estate Vineyards.

Charity, Food, Wine

Dec 18th Dine&Donate at Gravenstein Grill!

Leave a comment

Bring your big hearts and voracious appetites to help raise money for Ruby the Warrior Princess!  A brave little girl diagnosed last November with B-cell Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL).

Please join the Sebastopol and greater Sonoma Couunty communities at Gravenstein Grill (8050 Bodega Avenue, Sebastopol) on December 18th from 5-8pm in support of her family and medical care, or just make a donation directly at her Fundraiser Page.

Thanks for sharing your holiday spirit!

Cheers, Christopher

Charity, Feast It Forward, Sommelier

FEASTstock featuring mini-Somm Sessions on October 20th!

Leave a comment

Announcing the Inaugural Oxbow District FEASTstock Festival, presented by Feast it Forward and Oxbow Public Market:  Here is a chance to get your Somm Session sampling with me and guest winemakers throughout the day in a fun interactive setting!

McKinstry Street and Oxbow Annex parking lot will be closed to create a neighborly and family friendly FREE block party.  Come out and play with us for a day filled with wine, craft brew, grub from Oxbow District merchants, kids zone and much more alongside #FEASTstudio playing host as Napa’s Own, Johnny Smith & Friends, Dgiin, Quinn DeVeaux Band and Justin Schaefers & the Blind Barbers jam on stage from 11a-8:30pm.

Presented by Feast it Forward and Oxbow Public Market to RAISE awareness and funds for Community Action of Napa Valley Food Bank!

Charity, History, Wine

Nor Cal Fires: Looking Back, Moving Forward & Drinking Wine!

Leave a comment

Last month we were in Santa Rosa, my wife and son returned to a treasured park only to find it surrounded by burnt out lots.  The park was only grazed with crisp leaves and they were able to play their requisite basketball.  However, as they put it, felt like being in a forest.

A recent article I wrote, Out of the fires: Wildflowers and Pink Wine for Valley of the Moon Magazine is a look at the natural rebirth of some affected wineries.  The view above from my house during the fires, at the extreme end of southern Sonoma County, and beyond into the entire Bay Area, we all experienced the devastation from afar.

So have we, of course, been following the recovery:  Great news sources are the Press Democrat special section Rebuilding the North Bay, as well as this Facebook Page Rebuild NorthBay Foundation. The emblematic winery Paradise Ridge can be a reminder to us all that LOVE is leading us through!

small-love
Beltane-Ranch-vineyards-and-smoke
Charity, Event, Wine

For The Love of Napa concert raises spirits and funds for fire relief!

Leave a comment

There are so many incredible people coming together in support of those affected by the recent fires.  For The Love of Napa featured an amazing concert with Michael Franti and Spearhead and Vintage Trouble.  With so many affected, this is a chance for locals to show their resilience as a community and lift their spirits through the healing power of music. One-hundred percent of ticket sales went to victims of the region’s recent wildfires through the Napa Valley Community Foundation.

It all took place at Robert Mondavi Winery, in conjunction with BottleRock Presents, and raised in excess of $90K for fire relief.

THANK YOU to all that contributed time, money, music and wine!

 #NapaStrong #WineCountryStrong
#CAWineStrong #FeastItForward